In the one-eighth final of the UEFA Europa League, which ended on July 3, Beijing time, the Netherlands easily beat Romania with a score of 3-0 and successfully advanced to the next round. After the match, Dutch player Firmin attended the press conference and shared his recent journey and his outlook on the future matches.
Feldman began by talking about the tough time he had this past week. He confessed that he was eager to get on the field again and show what he could do due to the long period of time between games. However, it has been a bit of a long and torturous time for him. He was outspoken about the fact that it wasn't the easiest week of his career, and there were two days during which he found it particularly tough. But fortunately, when he got back into training, he managed to adjust his mindset and get ready for the game.
Talking about his experience of being substituted early against Austria, Firman appeared to be very open. He said that he has completely let go of the incident because he knows that as a professional player, he will always have the opportunity to play. At the same time, he also admitted that he did not expect to make his debut in today's game, because the coach will make a decision according to the needs of the team and the players' status. Firman's mature and rational attitude undoubtedly shows his professionalism as a good player.
During the conference, Feldman also revealed what he did in the face of outside reaction. He stated that he chose to turn off the internet to avoid too many distractions and negative repercussions. While he didn't completely miss all the information, he believes that this did himself some good. He thanked his teammates and coaches for their support and help during his difficult time, and made special mention of his coaches' encouragement and advice, which enabled him to adjust his mindset in time and continue to focus on training.
Finally, Feldman expressed cautious optimism about the Netherlands' future matches. He believes that other countries may encounter much greater difficulties than the Netherlands in the eighth-quarter finals, but this does not mean that the Dutch team can take things lightly. He emphasized that the team needs to stay focused and alert, and continue to play at their strength and level in order to achieve better results in the next matches.
